"[An] objective, incisive and intelligent account of police work. Moskos's graphic descriptions of the drug culture... are the most detailed and analytical to be found anywhere.—Arnold Ages, Jewish Post & Opinion

"Should be made mandatory reading for every recruit in the Balto. City Police Academy. ... I am so proud that you were a Baltimore Police Officer and a good one."—Colonel (ret.) Margaret Patton, Baltimore City Police Department

"I just finished reading the last footnote! Great stuff."—NYPD Lt. Detective (ret.) David Durk

"I have been a cop now for 23 years and your book really captured what it's like to be a street cop. . . . Great book, great insights."—Detective-Commander Joseph Petrocelli

"Moskos strips away hard to decipher cop-speak and sociological mumbo jumbo and presents something easily digestible by the average reader.... Moskos is a veteran of a war [on drugs] he disagrees with. But he has walked the walk, respects the brotherhood and, as far as I’m concerned, still bleeds blue."—Pepper Spray MeAcademics like it:

"Truly excellent.... Mandatory reading for all fans of The Wire and recommended for everyone else." —Tyler Cowen

"Ethnographic chutzpah.... Perhaps the best sociological account on what it means to police a modern ghetto.... Tells a great story centered around notions of race, power and social control."—Andrew Papachristos, American Journal of Sociology

"Recommended for...insights into law enforcement and, in a nerdier vein, how participant observation can inform social science."—The Monkey Cage

"Sorta like a non-fiction Joseph Wambaugh for the new millennium."—IrishPirate.

"For anyone interested is what being a police officer in Baltimore City is really like, Peter Moskos' in-depth, academic, and realist account in Cop in the Hood is a must-read. . . . enlightening and authoritative."—Sean O'Donnell, Baltimore Republican Examiner

My former boss, a convicted felon, he doesn't like it:

"Just garbage! ... Who does he think he is telling me what to do?"—Ex-Baltimore City Police Commissioner (and did I mention convicted felon?) Ed NorrisRead the full reviews.

It could have profound consequences.... In Defense of Flogging forces the reader to confront issues surrounding incarceration that most Americans would prefer not to think about. —Mansfield Frazier, The Daily Beast

“Flogging” is intriguing, even in — or because of — its shocking premise. As a case against prisons, Mr. Moskos' is airtight. —Washington Times

Compelling… Although his outrageous idea may conjure up unsavory reminders of U.S. slavery, by the end of “In Defense of Flogging,” Moskos might just have you convinced. —Salon

One of the very few public-policy books I've encountered that goes past wringing its hands over a societal problem.... Moskos's sharp little volume has a potential audience far beyond the experts. —Rich Fisher, Public Radio Tusla

A very important work... provocative, timely, and well-argued. I agree with you completely that our criminal justice system is out of control.... On one hand, the problems seem intractable. On the other hand, we're doomed if we don't do something about it. —(Former) CIA Agent John Kiriakou

It was, in truth, a book that I could not put down. I read it in two sittings (my butt was hurting after the first!)... You did well. —Gary Alan Fine, John Evans Professor of Sociology, Northwestern University.

Read the First Chapter of Cop in the Hood... for Free!

Read the Beginning of "In Defense of Flogging"...

LEAP: Law Enforcement Against Prohibition

Regulated drug selling would be a big improvement from the unregulated drug dealing we have now. It's not just stoners who want to legalize drugs. Sober short-haired police, judges, and prosecutors (some with wrap-around sun glasses and bad mustaches) also want to end the war on drugs. Prohibition doesn't work. Join or become a friend of LEAP: Law Enforcement Against Prohibition.